We’ll See
This is my favorite ancient story
Many, many years ago in a land far, far away, two farmers met at a local restaurant every morning for breakfast. One morning in the Spring, Fred burst into the cafe. John’s not surprised. Agitation seemed to be Fred’s go to.
“This is the worst day every,” Fred said.
“What happened?”
“Last night.” With both hands on the table eyes clearly focused on John. “Last night, my stallion ran off. We’ve looked everywhere. He’s gone.”
“I’m sure he’ll show up. Everyone knows he belongs to you.”
“You don’t understand. I’ve already committed him to plow for Mrs. Jones, and he’s supposed to impregnate two mares further down the valley. Everyone’s down payment is spent, and they’re going to expect me to pay them back. Without the stallion, I can’t even plow my own fields.”
He looked at his hands. “I’m ruined. This has to be the worst day ever.”
“We’ll see,” is all John said.
The next morning, Fred again burst into the restaurant. “You won’t believe this, my stallion’s back.”
“So, you’re saved,” John answered.
“Far better. He brought three mares home with him. I can work all four and even breed the mares. Can you believe it, I’m a horse breeder. I’m gonna be rich. This has to be the best day of my life.”
“We’ll see.”
The next morning, here comes Fred.
“It’s the worst. Yesterday afternoon my son was breaking one of the mares when the horse ran over him. Ran slam over him. Broke his leg and three ribs. He can’t work at all. What am I going to do? There’s no one left to help with my own plowing and planting. I can’t even break the mares myself. It’s a disaster. Worst day ever.”
“We’ll see.”
You know what happened the next morning.
Fred bursts in. “I can’t believe my luck.”
“What happened this time?” John’s a little tired of all the drama.
“The army came by late last night ‘recruiting’ young men. They took every man of age in the village, except my son. They passed by our house when they saw his broken leg. This has to be the best day of my life.”
And you know the answer.
“We’ll see.”
We aren’t smart enough to know what’s good or bad. So why not assume it’s good.